A Heart Within
by Alibear
Summary: Based upon the sneak peek for the season finale.  My take on what comes next.
1. Chapter 1

AN: This is my first attempt at a Castle fic. It is my take on what happens after she tells him they are over – in the preview for the finale. I apologize for any errors, as I don't have a beta. As usual I don't owe anything and this is done purely for fun. Hope you all enjoy it! Please review, I am always striving to improve.

"We're over Castle!" She stated vehemently, eye glowing with anger. Her words hung in the air between them like so many motes of unwanted dust.

He had finally done it, pushed her too far. He was smart enough to know that anything he said now would fall upon deaf ears. He had known better than to come to her apartment to plead that she back off. But he just couldn't let her continue without saying something. He was terrified that she would share the same fate as all the others.

He had long ago resolved his feelings for her. He loved her, despite all the walls she erected around her heart. He knew that inside that seemingly tough inner shell lurked a tender heart. He had seen it numerous times, even though she tried desperately to hide it with sarcasm and insult. It was there, and he had hoped that he could reach it this evening.

He knew she hadn't meant the words, that she was desperate to gain control and put an end to her mother's case, a case that had tormented and haunted her for so long. Her world revolved around that case. It was the reason she kept everyone at arms distance. As long as she kept her distance she would never have to explain. But he had been able to get past some of her defenses and begin to learn who the real Kate Beckett was.

He also knew when the tactical advantage was retreat. That was this moment.

"Get out." She said her voice barely above a furious whisper.

Holding up his hands in surrender he answered quietly, "I'll go. But I know you don't really mean that. Whatever it is we might or might not be, above everything else, I know that we are friends. And whether you want to hear it or not, I care about what happens to you. So just remember that as you continue this suicide mission of yours. Whenever you need me, I'll be there. Always."

With that he stepped around her, opened the door and walked out.


	2. Chapter 2

AN: Hope the first chapter, though short was intriguing. As usual I don't owe anything and this is done purely for fun. Enjoy! Please review if you have a free moment.

Chapter 2

Kate Beckett exhaled a loud shaky breath. She was alone, as she always thought she would be. It had been a calculated, painful maneuver she had just completed.

The moment he had shown up at her door, she knew why he was there. Gone was the jovial, carefree writer, replaced instead by a somber, serious man. This was the Rick Castle she feared most. She could deal with the goofy manchild, but not the emotional caring man she knew he was deep down. She knew that she would break if he showed even the smallest amount of emotion or caring. So she had steeled herself for the task ahead. Summoning all of her anger and hatred for what had happened to her mother. She couldn't let anything stand in the way of her quest for the truth, not even Castle.

As he had made his case, she knew deep down that everything he said was true. In all likelihood she would end up dead, another victim of the greater conspiracy. She had done everything she could to block out the faces and feelings of those that were closest to her. Knowing what they would go through would just feed her fear, allowing it to grow until it consumed her and she could no longer continue. And here was Castle, standing in her home, giving a voice and face to that fear.

So she did the only thing she knew how to do. She used all her strength to push him away using ridicule and anger and hatred. She had known that she was hurting him, hurting the others she loved, but she couldn't care about that. It would be better in the long run for them. She was trying to make it easier if or when the inevitable happened. Pushing them away was the only way she knew to accomplish that.

It had been harder than she had anticipated. Now she was realizing that she cared for Rick more than she had ever cared to admit to herself. She had always punched down those feelings for the writer that had resided stubbornly around her heart. She couldn't allow herself the luxury of falling to hard for someone. It might distract her from her mission. Now, she was both emotionally and physically spent from their encounter. It had been so difficult to hurl those words at him.

She finally realized that she was still standing staring at the door, the last place she had seen him, the last time she might ever see him. With great effort she moved her body across the floor to her couch where it collapsed in a heap. Not having the energy to cushion herself from the impact, her head smashed into the pillows and she lie there unmoving. Before she knew what was happening, he tears began to fall. With great gut wrenching sobs she wept for what she had lost today.

Had she been another person in another set of circumstances, she could have easily thrown herself into him. For all his goofy charm, there was a caring man beneath. She had watched him grow these last few years into a wonderful, caring man who would put friends and family above everything else. Gone was the party boy she had so often accused him of being.

The more she thought, the harder the tears fell. This was to be her life, and she had chosen it. She had never been one for close friends, so she would just be reverting back to her original being. She had survived then, she would survive again.

A fitful sleep finally claimed her, allowing the tears to dry into salty patches on her cheeks, and the whirlwind of thought to find peace, at least for the moment, in her mind.


	3. Chapter 3

AN: Here is Chapter 3. Thanks for the reviews! Keep them coming…I love the characters, but don't own them….

Rick Castle entered his apartment with a heavy heart. Everything had gone as he had expected. He had never thought that anything he would say would dissuade her. He had only hoped.

"Richard," Martha called out from her seat on the couch. "You look like you just lost your best friend." She quipped.

Her words couldn't have been more ill-timed or truer. He raised his eyes to hers, and in that moment she knew that something was terribly wrong. Her usually carefree son looked more serious than she had ever seen him.

Casting aside the magazine she had been reading, its gossipy headlines now totally forgotten, she rose from the couch and went to him.

"What's happened?" she asked frantically. If she didn't know that Alexis was safely ensconced in her room, she would have thought something had happened to her beloved granddaughter. "Is Kate alright?" Knowing instinctively that this somehow involved the Detective.

"No Mother. She's not." He said softly, as Martha guided him to the couch.

He allowed himself to be pulled to a seated position next to his Mother.

"Rick, what's going on?" She pressed.

"She's going to get herself killed, and she doesn't care."

"Killed? How?"

"She's going after the person who killed her mother, a powerful figure who has disposed of everyone else who has touched this case. Kate won't be any different. She won't be able to protect herself. She'll be the next victim."

"Oh Richard. I'm sorry."

"I went over there to try and talk some sense into her. But it was pointless. She ended our partnership and threw me out. I couldn't talk her down. She's determined to see this through, no matter what the consequences. She's finally pushed me away." He said, turning to look at Martha.

"She's scared. She's scared and doesn't know what else to do. You can't abandon her." She stated emphatically.

"I would never abandon her, but she won't let me in, she won't let me help her. She won't see reason."

"Have you told her how you feel?" She asked bluntly.

He turned again to meet her eyes, searching to discover if she really knew his feelings. Of course she did. He had never been able to hide anything form his mother. It had been incredibly frustrating as a teenager.

"I tried, but she didn't want to hear it. She accused me of being nothing more than a grown child. She was doing everything she could to push me away."

"Rick, she didn't mean any of it."

"I know that, don't you think I know that." He barked rising from the couch. Crossing the room he roughly raked his hand through his hair. Turning back toward his mother he looked at her apologetically.

"I know she's scared and I want more than anything in this world to help her, but she doesn't want me anywhere near her. I can't even work with her anymore. How am I supposed to help her through this without being able to be near her? I don't know what to do?"

Martha stood and traced her son's steps to the other side of the room. How much he had grown in the last few years. She had always known that Detective Beckett would be good for him. Since he had become a famous writer, no one, especially women, had really denied him anything. Detective Beckett had thought of him as nothing more than a spoiled child, and she had been partially right. Martha had silently cheered at the tough Detectives efforts at knocking her son down a peg or two.

Now here he stood, open and raw, unable to help the woman he loved. The one thing Martha knew about her son was that he never backed away from a challenge.

Taking his face in her hands she said, "That's not the Richard Castle I know and love. You've never met a challenge you couldn't conquer, or at least try to. What makes this one any different?"

"Mother." He said in an exasperated tone.

She held up her hand, "Hear me out. At this point she doesn't know what she needs or wants. She's terrified of what she has to do, and no matter what she says or does, she doesn't want to do it alone. She's a tough cookie Rick, and it's all she's ever known. She doesn't know how to open up to someone. Don't give her a choice."

"If you love her, and I know you do by the way, then nothing should be able to stand in your way. Not even the misguided notions of Kate Beckett. Go to her Rick, make her understand that no matter who she is or what she wants to do, you will be there for her."

He looked at Martha and saw the truth of her statements. He wouldn't give up, couldn't give up on Kate. He gave his mother a fierce hug, which she returned in kind; silently willing him not to get himself hurt or killed in the process.


	4. Chapter 4

AN: I am so glad that you guys are liking it. This is my first attempt with these characters and I am so glad I am doing them justice. I probably won't get another chapter up until the weekend as real life will intrude on my writing time. Keep the reviews coming. Enjoy!

Chapter 4

The next morning Beckett sat glumly at her desk doing anything she could find to keep her mind off the empty chair to her left. Those that knew her best were wise enough not to comment on her bloodshot swollen eyes as she walked in. Though her uber business like demeanor kept the comments at bay, it could not stop the worried glances sent her way from Ryan and Esposito.

Fric and Frac as they were affectionately known knew that something was very wrong. While they certainly were more often than not the comic relief at the station, they still were detectives. When Castle had not shown up that morning they knew something was wrong. There was no way Rick would have left Beckett alone on this case. Not when they were so close to catching her mother's killer.

However it hadn't taken any of their combined crime fighting knowledge to determine that Beckett was in love with Rick Castle. She might put on a gruff exterior, but they all knew what the writer meant to her, and what she meant to him. They often chuckled about the dance the two did, often comparing them to a pair of chickens.

"Dude what do you think happened?" Esposito threw the whisper in Ryan's direction.

"I don't know, but whatever it was, it was BIG!" Ryan whispered back, indicating the size of the big with his hands. They both threw a furtive glance in the direction of Detective Beckett.

When they found her staring at them they quickly averted their eyes to whatever work they had in front of them.

"Shut up." She said, giving them both a death stare.

The elevator dinged in the distance, but she didn't notice. She was reading the case file again, hoping to find anything that might have been missed. As she flipped the page, someone flopped into her visitor's chair. Preparing her best get away from me face, she looked up ready to rip into the person. Instead she met the smiling eyes of Rick Castle.

"What are you doing here Castle?" She queried.

"Same thing I always do." He replied.

"I thought I made myself clear last night. We are done. I don't have time to play your games anymore Castle."

"Well Beckett, I am choosing to ignore that particular directive, as you were obviously mentally and emotionally compromised last night. You didn't really know what you were saying."

"I most certainly did, and I meant every word. Get out of here Castle. You don't belong here, you never did." She said looking into his eyes.

"Be that as it may," he replied flippantly, "I'm not going anywhere."

"Who the hell do you…" she stopped and looked up when a she caught a movement out of the corner of her eye. Ryan and Esposito had nonchalantly moved closer in an attempt to eavesdrop on the fascinating conversation. Seeing that their cover had been blown, they quickly looked around for anything to make them look busy.

"Can I help you?" She asked in their general direction with a look that would make most grown men nervous.

"What? Us? Nope, we're good." Ryan said as the pair backed away quickly.

"Look Castle, I am not going to do this with you here. In fact I'm not going to do this with you anywhere. I said my piece last night and I meant it. Now, I have more important things to do." With that she stood, grabbed her coat and took off for the elevator.

Accepting defeat, Castle turned to look at the boys and shrugged his shoulders.

Sensing that their input was needed Esposito said, "Go after her, "motioning with his chin in the direction of Beckett's retreating form.

"I think I will" was Castle's only reply as he got up give chase.


End file.
